That’s something that Man United will need to decide with Chris Smalling, while Arsenal could also face that choice with Henrikh Mkhitaryan. Neither were considered important members of the team before they left, so it would be a surprise to see them come back and challenge for a place.

According to Sky Sports, the Roma manager Paulo Fonseca wants to sign both on a permanent deal, so this could be the ideal chance for both clubs to get some money for out of favour players.

Mkhitaryan celebration for Roma.

There doesn’t seem to be any indication that clauses were included in either loan deal which allowed Roma to sign them, so it sounds like they will need to agree a fee.

It’s been fascinating to see Smalling play abroad to see how he adapted to a new culture and style of play, and there’s even a chance he might get back into the England team.

It does seem unlikely that United would want to bring him back, but that could add some extra pounds onto his eventual fee.